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Adolescence is the stage of life during which most people begin using alcohol, and it is also a time of considerable social, psychological, and physiological change. The brain, particularly the frontal cortex, continues to develop throughout adolescence and does not fully mature until early adulthood. Adolescent alcohol exposure can impair brain development, compromise short- and long-term...

Recent epidemiological research has identified alarming trends in drinking patterns of girls and women in the United States. In recent years, the amount and frequency of alcohol use are increasing in White and Hispanic girls and young women in contrast to decreasing patterns of heavy alcohol use in boys and young men.^1,2 Similarly, current and binge alcohol use is rising among older women,^3,4 resu...

Individuals seeking to change their alcohol use form a heterogeneous group with varied treatment goals—including moderation and abstinence—that therefore requires flexible treatment options. The availability of alcohol in the United States, and the pervasive social pressure to drink, warrant treatments that support individuals outside the treatment environment and that foster coping and self...

Binge drinking, commonly defined as consuming five or more standard drinks per occasion for men and four or more drinks for women, typically begins in adolescence. Adolescents, although they may drink less often, tend to consume higher quantities of alcohol per occasion compared with adults. This developmental difference in pattern of alcohol consumption may result, in part, from maturational...

With growing awareness of the impact of alcohol consumption on global health (Rehm et al. 2004; World Health Organization [WHO] 2002, 2009) the demand for global information on alcohol consumption and alcohol-attributable and alcohol-related harm as well as related policy responses has increased significantly. Public health problems attributable to harmful alcohol consumption have become the focus...

Binge drinking is a pattern of alcohol drinking that raises a person’s blood alcohol concentration to at least .08%, which amounts to consuming five alcoholic drinks for men and four alcoholic drinks for women in about 2 hours. It is the most common form of alcohol misuse in adolescents and young adults. Heavy drinking includes the same criterion as binge drinking, but with higher frequency (i.e...

Even though the consequences of alcohol dependence (AD) clearly are devastating and obvious to observers, the molecular mechanisms involved in the development of the disease are far from clear and understood. The search for these mechanisms is made even more difficult by the vast number of genes, proteins, and pathways in the human body that potentially could be involved, and by the obvious...

Alcoholism is a complex disorder arising from a combination of genetic and environmental factors. The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM–IV) (American Psychiatric Association 1994) requires that three of seven criteria be present during a 12-month period for a diagnosis of alcohol dependence. These criteria are tolerance, withdrawal symptoms, loss of control...

Introduction

Endogenous cannabinoids, or endocannabinoids (eCBs), are bioactive lipid molecules that modulate signaling activity of several physiological processes involved in pain, appetite, energy balance, stress/anxiety, immune signaling, and learning and memory. Although understanding of the eCB system has grown in complexity since its discovery by Raphael Mechoulam, it is now widely known...

Alcohol is strongly linked to the leading causes of adolescent and adult mortality and health problems, making medical settings such as primary care and emergency departments important venues for addressing alcohol use. Extensive research evidence supports the effectiveness of alcohol screening and brief interventions (SBIs) in medical settings, but this valuable strategy remains underused, with...